What I'm Afraid Of
by mind on sleave
Summary: OWKB story. In Oliver's 7th Year, he decides he's going to take the chance...but chickens out. Over and over again. With a little help from Alicia, George, Angelina, Fred and Katie herself, can he finally say how he's felt for the past 3 years?
1. The Results of Betting

**Disclaimer: **if I owned it, would I be writing here for no money?

**A/N: **okay, so this story was sort of inspired by the song "I think I love You" by the Partridges….I don't normally listen to them, but this one song like stuck in my brain from two years ago, and than I was reading another story and I was like **"O!"** and voila…this story was born. Also, I'm trying to go by their ages in the book, so George, Fred, Alicia and Angelina are all in 6th, Katie is in 5th and Oliver in 7th.

Any way, here's the first chappy of "What I'm Afraid Of"

**The Results of Betting: **

As was normal for him during the first week of school, Oliver Wood could not sleep. He lay in his bed in the 7th Year Boys Dormitory and sighed. He couldnt get the train ride here out of his head. It was where he had seen Alicia, Angelina, Fred, George and Katie for the first time since the end of school, and where Katie had seemed just as lively as ever, only this year...this year was different. This year, she looked amazing. She didnt look any different. Her figure was just as curvy and not model perfect as ever and she was still a perfect 5'5". She was just the perfect height for him to rest his chin on her head -- a thing she loved to complain about. He couldnt really say what was different, only that she seemed older, more mature, more acceptable for him to crush on this year.

She was the only girl he had ever had a crush on. Ever since she got on the team in her 2nd year, Oliver's 4th, he had been drawn to her. She was intelligent but totally not good with remembering words, yet when a comeback needed to be said, it came out with a such a venom that even 7th years had shrunk back from her spunky 2nd year frame. Plus she was adorably clumsy on the ground, although in the air, it was a different matter. In the air, she could do things older people couldn't do, such as get the quaffle past Oliver over 9 times in the course of a 2 hour practice. She was the only one that Oliver knew who could persuade the team that the did in fact need two 4 hour practices on Saturday, even though it was raining, and she was the only other person in the entire world whose _Quidditch Through The Ages_ book was almost as worn as his was -- in fact, she might be the only other one who had bought a _Quidditch Through The Ages _book. Her face just would not leave his head tonight, and it was beginning to irk him, but in a way that he loved.

"Well, might as well get up and go read" he whispered to himself and swung his legs off the table. Picking up his copy of _Quidditch Through The Ages_, he padded across the room and down the stairs. He settled himself in front of the fire, and within and hour, had fallen asleep where he reclined on one of the couches.

"Oliver! Oy! Oliver! Wake up!" an insistent tapping on Oliver's left temple accompanied the male voice intruding upon his dreams.

He groaned, flapped at the hand attacking his head, and tried to snuggle deeper into sleep. The tapping became harder, and the voice a little louder, much to Oliver's dislike.

"Oliver! Get up now! Breakfast is in 5 minutes!"

A new voice responded to the first one, this time female, which Oliver's subconscious recognized as Alicia Spinnet, "What are you talking about George? It starts in 15!"

Another voice, belonging to Angelina Johnson, "Than why are we waking him up now? Wouldn't it be more fun to see him race down there half-asleep like he did yesterday?"

A fourth voice entered the conversation, this one also male "I believe we've embarrassed him enough for the first week of school, now the torturing begins."

"Fred, would you like to do the honors?" said the first male, George Weasley.

"I thought you'd never ask!" the second male, Fred Weasley responded.

Just as Oliver's groggy mind registered the fact that the Weasley twins were discussing torturing him, accompanied by what sounded like Angelina Johnson and Alicia Spinnet, and he suspected Katie Bell, he felt a jet of water spray into his ear. He gasped and tried to jump out of the way, in the process falling off the couch that he had been on.

As he sat on the ground trying to rid his ear of water, now fully awake, a black girl bent down in front of him. Her braids were pulled back and her hazel colored eyes looked at him questioningly. "Hello, Mr. Captain Sir. Did we wake you?" she asked, grinning cheekily.

He glared at her and rose from the ground, taking the nail bitten hand offered to him. As he stood, he noticed that it was Katie's hand that had helped him up. She gave him a warm smile and pulled her brunette chin length hair into a messy bun.

"Oy, Kates, you biting again?" he asked in his Scottish accent.

She blushed and nodded.

"Good morning, Ollie! Did you sleep well? Dream of anyone?" Fred grinned, taking the pressure off Katie, and directing the attention of their inquisitive Quidditch captain on him.

"Morning to you too, Fred, I was sleeping fine until you decided to attack my temple"

"Mmm, nope, that was me," George said, raising his hand slightly and grinning.

Oliver rolled his eyes, "what ever -- it was one of you. And why would I dream about anyone?" his eyes flickered to where Katie stood, unusually silent.

Alicia, being the perceptive person that she was, giggled and nudged Katie in the side. Katie looked at her for a moment and than produced a chalkboard and chalk from her robe. She wrote something down on it, and Angelina, reading over Katie's shoulder responded in a whisper so that none of the boys could hear her. Katie wrote something else, and when Alicia responded, she rolled her eyes, huffed and stalked out of the Common Room. Alicia and Angelina giggled and followed her, stopping first to plant a kiss on their boyfriends' cheeks.

Oliver raised his eyebrow and looked at the twins. "What did you do now?"

"We bet Katie on something, and she lost. So, she can't talk until dinner today." George responded, walking towards the portrait hole to go down to breakfast.

"What did you bet on?"

"Erm...that information" began Fred.

"Cannot be released" continued George.

"Due to the fact"

"That you may hurt us if we told you" finished George and held open the portait so that the others could climb through.

"For some reason, I dont want to know now" Oliver said and led the way down to breakfast.

**A/N: **hope you guys liked it! And please please please please review. I like it when people review...even if it's flames (although, dont make them too mean...I do have feelings) ... reviews make me happy, and when i'm happy, i post, and when i post, you read more...so, if you want more...review!


	2. A Team and A Chicken

**Disclaimer: **seriously…do I look like I own it?

This chapter has been fine tuned by my boyfriend since he went on for a page and a half about all the things I did wrong in the last chapter…including pointing out where I missed apostrophes…Anyway, onto the 2nd chappy!

**A Team and a Chicken **

"Oy! Katie!" Oliver called to his chaser; "Do you think you could aim at the posts at least? Not at Angelina?"

"She's making fun of me!" Katie exclaimed and glared at Angelina, who was wiping her streaming eyes and coughing from laughing. As she almost slipped from her broom, Alicia, who had flown up beside her, righted her. Katie made to fly towards them but was stopped by a disapproving sound coming from Oliver.

He glared at her and began his normal 'Katherine, please pay attention and act like a real Quidditch player and not a two-year-old' speech. He was interrupted by the need to duck as a bludger zoomed for his head. He looked in the direction it came from and saw George pointing to Fred, who in turn was pointing to George, both were grinning like maniacs.

As he was about to yell at the twins, he was interrupted by Harry, hovering a foot over the ground near the door to the Ravenclaw Locker Rooms. He raised his left hand triumphantly and shouted "Can I go in now? I've got the snitch!"

Oliver glowered at the rest of the team and waved a begrudging okay to Harry.

"What about us, Ollie dear?" Alicia asked, pouting slightly and fluttering her eyelashes.

"Oy! Allie! Hello? Boyfriend! Right here! Am I suddenly invisible or something? Fred, can you see me?" George bellowed from where he hovered half way across the field.

Fred looked in the general direction of George with a confused look on his face, "I hear something, but I don't see anything. Mister Voice, you sound almost exactly like my brother, do you know where's he's gone? I can't see him at all!" he ducked as George's beater bat flew at him.

"O, stuff it, George! You know I love you!" Alicia stated.

George whipped around and stared at her, "You…you do? That's the first time you've ever said that! You love me?"

"Yes!" Alicia said, rolling her eyes and smiling at him.

George grinned, and he raised his eyebrow in a inappropriate manner. He pulled her into a kiss as he flew towards her. Fred led out a whoop and Angelina smirked. Katie smiled in a way that made Oliver wish he was kissing her like George was kissing Alicia…but than he came to his senses.

"THIS IS A QUIDDITCH PRACTICE! NOT A SNOGGING SESSION AND NOT A TIME TO JOKE AROUND! THIS IS SERIOUS! OUR FIRST GAME IS IN A MONTH AND WE ARE COMPLETELY FAILING RIGHT NOW! KATIE, AIM FOR THE RUDDY HOOPS, GEORGE AND ALICIA STOP PLAYING TONGUE TAG, FRED STOP GRINNING AND ANGELINA IF YOU SAY ONE MORE THING TO ANYONE, I WILL PERSONALLY SEE TO IT THAT YOU DO RUN LAPS FOR THE REST OF THE SEASON!" screamed Oliver.

His close cropped brown hair stood straight out from his head and he was a rather interesting shade of maroon. The entire Gryffindor Quidditch team was silent, a feat achieved once in a lifetime. Katie stared at Oliver and than a grin broke her stunned face.

"Ollie dearest, we all love you and completely respect you, but … you have something right there." she said, scraping at her nose and giving him a condescending motherly look. Fred snickered and looked towards Angelina who looked like she was waiting for an explosion to go off – the explosion of course being Oliver's temper again.

Oliver's nostrils flared angrily as he swiped at his nose, only smearing the streak of dirt and sweat. "Nope, it's still there." he swiped again, "O here, let me do it." Katie flew towards him and used her robe to carefully dust off his nose. "There, much better. Now then, you were saying?" she gave him a prim and innocent look.

He stared at her. "I give up!" he finally whispered, and flew towards the locker rooms. Katie sighed and turned towards the team.

"Damn…pushed him too far again. Angie, Allie, practice passing; Fred, George, beat at each other, or whatever it is you do. Please be good…for Oliver." She said defeatedly and followed their captain.

"Ollie?" She called as she entered the locker rooms. "Ollie?" she heard a shower running and walked over to it. "Oliver," she stated, sitting down outside the stall, "C'mon. We're just trying to have a little fun. I know, this is not the way you wanted your first practice to go, but right now, they're out there practicing…trust me."

"You left Fred, George, Angelina and Alicia outside, unsupervised. Do you realize what they're doing? They're snogging on my goal hoops!" Oliver said from inside it.

"No, they're not."

"How do you know?" he sounded like a spoiled child.

"Because I told them to be good. Oliver, despite the fact that we make fun of you and call you obsessed and insane, we love you Ollie. You're our captain. Think of it this way…okay?" Katie asked.

Oliver mumbled a "yea…okay" and Katie continued.

"We're picking up your slack. You're too serious, and so to even out the serious versus joking part, we feel it is up to us to even it out. But they are out there working Ollie…trust me…when you're old and sitting in a rocking chair, gumming your pudding, we want you to look back and say 'Although I captained Puddlemere United the year they won the World Cup, my 7th year Hogwarts Team was the best I ever had'"

He couldn't hold back a smile at that comment. But then another thought entered his mind, "Than why do you insist on driving me insane?"

"Ah, Oliver, that is one of the mysteries of life. That is a question that I can't answer, although for me, it's to see if I can get you to grin in spite of your serious demeanor." He could tell she was nodding knowingly as she said this. Flipping off the water, he stepped out of the shower and looked down at her. His robes made a puddle on the ground and water was dripping off the end of his nose.

Grinning, she exclaimed, "I knew I could get you to come out."

He held out a hand to her, and she accepted it. When she stood before him, he didn't let go. "Kate, can I tell you something?"

"Sure, Ollie, what's eating you…besides us?"

He gazed at her and took a deep breath,"I…I like…" he faltered.

"You like…?" she made a movement that clearly said 'spit it out, I know you can do it.'

"I … like…your new Quidditch gloves. Very professional looking. Yea…wow, is that real dragon hide on the inside?" he asked quickly, examining her gloved palms and turning pink about his ears.

She sighed and gave a defeated smile, "Yea, Ol'…that's dragon hide." She slipped her hand out of his and walked out of the locker rooms.

Oliver smacked himself in the forehead, muttering "dragon hide…of course it's dragon hide! I got them for her!" He growled in frustration and mumbled a spell to dry himself off, than followed her out of the room.

**To all my reviewers: THANK YOU SO MUCH! You all make me so happy! Hope you like this one as well. **

**PureHikari: **aww! Thank you! Don't worry, I plan to continue! Especially if I get wonderful reviews like that all the time! And especial thanks to being my first reviewer!

**Anonomous: **I knew there was a reason that I only let you edit my stories in English! Speaking of which…want to be my editor, Blondes? But thank you for the compliment! Made me get all misty eyed!

**Watchtowersing: **hope I live up to your ideas…but I am trying to make her a little less girlie than some other authors have done…mostly cuz if she's Quidditch obsessed/plays Quidditch, than I tend to view people like that as a little more easy going tom boyish but in a girlie kind of way. (looks back on that and realizes it makes no sense)

**Kit Merlot: **there is more…did you like the more?

**Maria Casey Wood:** truth is…I have no idea what they bet on…but obviously my audience wants to kno…so I will spend the next few minutes trying to think of what they bet on, and than try to work it in in the next chappies.

**Grey Rivers: **with _all _the stuff that makes you sick? Wow…if I hadn't already eaten more ice cream than normal food today, I would definitely take you up on that offer for everything. Hope you liked it!

**Now than, just because there are already reviews, doesnt mean you cant do more...what can i say? i'm greedy for reviews!**


	3. Quidditch and Socks

**Disclaimer: **if I owned it, the world as we know it would be a swirling vortex of doom! Bwahahaha! … (thinks to self: I should probly stop watching little kid cartoons while I type…)

Quidditch and Socks 

Oliver sat in a corner of the common room and stared at the group of people who were sitting at a table near the stairs to the girls' dorms. He sighed and rested his head in his hands as the two males in the group peeled away and walked towards him.

"Hey," Fred murmured, sitting down next to him.

"Mrmph" Oliver grunted, head still in his hands.

"Well, that's very nice…now, could you actually use words?" George asked, grinning.

"I like her!" he mumbled from behind his hands.

George looked questioningly at Fred, who shrugged, "Who, Ollie?"

"Katie!" Oliver moaned.

Realization dawned on the twins and Fred chuckled, "George, I do believe that our dear captain must have made an idiot of himself!"

"Not Oliver! What is the world coming to?" George exclaimed, covering his face dramatically with his hands.

Oliver looked up, "It's not funny!" he wailed.

Fred sighed, clapped a hand on Oliver's shoulder and used his other hand to gesture as he spoke, "Oliver, Oliver, Oliver…yea, it is, mate. Let me guess, you tried to tell her how you felt, and ended up talking about Quidditch?"

"How did you know?"

"You're Oliver," George said like even the most basic intelligence should be able to comprehend such a fact, "When you worry about something, you start talking about Quidditch…well, actually whenever you open your mouth, you start talking about Quidditch. We've actually got a running bet on how long you can—" George was stopped by a sharp jab in the stomach from his brother. "What! We're not telling him? Well than, scratch that Ollie…Anyway, I personally think that if you try to talk about something else for more than let's say, a minute, than your Quidditch side takes over and wham! You start talking about Quidditch again!" George clapped his hands as he said 'wham' and nodded enthusiastically.

"And that's supposed to help me how?" said Oliver desperately. "I mean, thanks for that little bit of insight into my own mind, but it doesn't bloody help in this situation does it?"

Fred smacked his brother on the back of the head and looked Oliver in the eye, "What my dearest brother is _trying_ to say, is that you tried to tell the girl that you liked her, and it blew up in your face because you flipped out and started talking about a subject that has been talked into the ground between you and her, but it's not the end of the world…at least, I think that's what he's trying to say." Fred looked at George to confirm it.

At this point, Katie had stood up from the group of girls by the fire, patted a goodnight to Angelina on the head and walked somewhat dejectedly up the stairs.

"O god…just look at her! I did that to her! I made her feel like that!" Oliver cried.

"Shut up!" George said forcefully, "No you didn't. Or if you did, it can be fixed. Look, when I was trying to ask Alicia out, I freaked out four times before I finally got it out. You know you've messed it up when you start talking about patterned socks and what designs you like best. Quidditch is nothing compared to socks."

Oliver gave a reluctant laugh, "I guess you're right."

"I know he is" Fred said, "Now than,"

"All you have to do," George continued.

"Is try it again."

"Get back up on that broomstick, Ollie!"

Oliver smiled and stood up, "Thanks guys, but I think I'm going to turn in. See you tomorrow, don't forget we have a morning practice."

Fred and George glared at him and muttered a "fine".

* * *

"Angie! Alicia! Open up!" the incessant banging on the door woke up the blonde, who had been enjoying a very pleasant dream about a certain red-haired boyfriend of hers. She stared at the clock and growled when she realized it was 2:15 in the morning. Gnashing her teeth in fury, she walked towards the door and wrenched it open. 

"Katie, I love you to death, but it is currently 2:15 in the morning and you woke me up from dreaming about George! If you don't have a _very_ good reason, than that 'to death' part may come true!" she seethed at the brunette standing there.

"Look, I'm sorry, but I need to tell someone this, and the girls in my dorm are just…" she made a noise of disgust, "and it's really important, and I wouldn't've woken you up if I didn't feel like I was going to explode and potentially ruin my social life for the next two years!" Katie said in a rush.

By this point, the rest of the dorm had woken up and were staring groggily at the two of them.

Katie smiled and waved an apologetic hello to the five girls. Four of them groaned and flopped down into bed again, covering their heads with pillows and fervently hoping that the younger girl would go away and leave them in peace. The last one rubbed her eyes and stood up.

"Common room" she muttered and pushed past Alicia and Katie in the doorway and down the stairs. The two others followed her down to the cushy chairs in the center of the room.

"Spill, so I can go back to sleep." Angelina said as she curled into a ball in one of the chairs.

Katie sighed and said quickly. "I like Oliver and I think he likes me too, since today after I talked him out of the shower – don't worry, he was fully clothed – he looked at me and was like 'I like…I like' and than started going off about my gloves and wondering if it was ruddy dragon skin and than did you notice how he was really quiet at dinner, almost like he was thinking something over and have you noticed how he always asks my opinion about things? I mean, he never does that to Fred and George, although I can see why, no offense"

"None taken," Alicia and Angelina muttered, waking up slightly as the topic interested them more and more.

"And those two are his best friends, besides Percy of course, but I personally think that's just because they're in the same year, but that's not the point. The point is that I really like Oliver and I think he likes me too, but is just too scared to say it. What do I do?"

"You…" Angelina bit her lip, mulling over the situation.

"You don't worry about it right now," Alicia consoled, "I had to go through an entire conversation about George's favorite patterns on socks before he got up the nerve to ask me out. Boys are just helpless when it comes to expressing feelings. They come equipped with three emotions and three emotions only: happy, neutral and angry. You, as the female of our species, have to coax them into the more complex emotions of affection, and love."

Katie and Angelina stared at her for a moment. Katie, recovering first, remarked: "Wow, it seems I stumbled upon an untapped fountain of knowledge!"

"That's only because she wants to go to bed. She's very intelligent about these types of things when you dangle something like dirty dreams about George in front of her." Angelina ducked as Alicia sent a pillow and a glare at her.

"So, basically I shouldn't worry yet?" Katie asked, hoping she had found at least something to get her through the days until he asked her out.

"Resorting to Quidditch is nothing compared to socks, dear" Alicia said, smiling in a motherly way, "Now than," she said, her smile changing to more of a mischievous grin, "if you are done worrying, I'd like to get back to my honeymoon in dreamland!" She stuck out her tongue and flounced up the stairs.

Angelina looked at Katie, and shrugged. "If it gets really bad, we'll talk to him and encourage him. Don't worry Kates, by the time the Yule Ball comes around, you will be snogging Oliver senseless." She smirked at Katie's reaction and followed her roommate up the stairs.

Katie grinned to herself and settled in to watch the fire in the fire place, before remembering that she had an early practice tomorrow and sprinting up the stairs. When she reached her bed, she fell into a sleep that was riddled with dreams of a certain keeper.

**A/N: **if you liked, please review…if you didn't…please review…and now, for my own pleasure, here are responses to your reviews.

**Sugwrgndwn:** that's the beauty of being writing about these characters…the only two that you know as a reader are Fred and George…the rest of them don't really have personalities that are portrayed in the book…so, I can make up my own.

**Olympian **and** Grey Rivers: **your reviews made me crack up…and than get funny looks from my dad and his co-workers, which, oddly enough, is not as rare as some might think, but thank you for putting a little laughter into my day (sarcastic pessimistic voice in head gags at sweetness; sweet tempered voice whacks it on the head with a mallet, than smiles angelically)

**Kit Merlot: **(poker face) my lawyer says I'm not allowed to disclose any information about Katie kissing Oliver just yet… (smiles) but thank you… and I hope you liked the "more"!

**Watchtowersing: **POST IT! I'LL DEFINITELY READ AND REVIEW! And I'm sure you'll do fine…I was worried about mine too…but than I was like "you kno what, it doesn't matter if I'm bad…cuz who's gonna kno its me unless I tell them?"

**Spexy: **thank you! (does a little happy dance at mention of my story being "cute")

ALSO: i'm leaving till next friday, the 5th...i'll write while i'm away probly...or at least regain all forms of creativeness that have since left me. REVIEW!


	4. Saturday Morning

**Disclaimer: **no mom! i swear! it's not mine! i just found it!

**Saturday Morning**

Katie sat at the table in the Great Hall the following Saturday morning, reading the daily prophet and munching a bit of toast. George plopped down beside her and stared meaningfully at her ear until she looked up.

"Yes, George?" she sighed.

"You like Ollie, right?"

"Erm…" she blushed and put down the newspaper and toast, than turned to face him head-on.

"Okay, you do" he said, "and he likes you. But he's a chicken and won't ask you out, right?"

"George," she looked at him like he had grown two heads, "when did you get so straight forward and serious?"

"That is not the point. But I was always this way, I just hide it in case someone thinks I bear resemblance to Percy." At this he shuddered, and Katie smiled appreciatively. "Anyway, Oliver likes you, you like Oliver, Oliver's too chicken to ask you to go to Hogsmeade or where ever. So, Fred and I devised a plan—"

"What? No! _You _devised it, George!" Fed said, sitting on the other side of Katie. "I had no part, except saying 'it could work'."

"Yea, that's helping! Helping equals devising!" George retorted.

"No, that's agreeing." George glared at his brother, "Well I don't want to get hit! And she will hit you! You will hit him, won't you, Katie?" Fred asked.

"Erm…why?" Katie looked back and forth between the red-heads with a wary look on her face.

"Because George is an idiot!" Fred exclaimed.

"What? If I am, than so are you!" George argued.

"Guys! George, what are you bloody talking about, and Fred, you can't stand to let someone plan something without you, so get over it, you probably devised just as much as he did."

"Fine…tell her, George!" Fred smirked and settled in to the bench, than realized there was food in front of him and dug in.

George sighed and looked at Katie. "Okay, Kates. See what we had in mind was you tell him and that way, it will all be solved."

Katie stared at him and laughed. "It took both of you to come up with that?" she asked, still giggling.

"Oh, no!" Alicia said as she sat down across from the twins and Katie, "You told her didn't you? Katie, I swear, I told them it was a stupid idea…I mean, you're the girl…it's like, social law that the guy has to make the first step!"

"I made the first step though," Angelina said grabbing an orange as she sat next to Alicia. She winked at Fred, and he blushed as she blew him a kiss.

"Guys, yea…it is a good idea, but what am I supposed to do? Walk up to him and go 'Hey Ollie, I like you, you like me, lets get together, yea?" Katie shook her head and reached for her toast again.

At this point, the doorway to the Great Hall exploded in noise, and silence coated the rest of the room.

"Percy! You cannot just walk away from me like that!" Oliver's voice bellowed.

The tall red-head striding away from him turned around face him and said in an icy voice, "O really, Wood? Because I thought I just was. I don't care if I am your ruddy best friend, you do not talk to a head boy like that!"

"Like you're so all powerful, Weasley!"

"I know I'm not!" Percy's eyes flashed and he stormed to the opposite end of the table, where he sat angrily next to Penelope Clearwater.

Oliver's nostrils flared in anger and he stomped to where Katie, Alicia, Angelina and the twins were sitting. He flopped down next to Alicia and huffed. "Stupid prat. Thinks he's Fudge or something!" he muttered and made a face that the rest of them took to be an impersonation of Percy. Katie snorted and was rewarded with a glare from Oliver. "Think this is funny, do you, Bell?" he fumed.

"No, but your face is, Ollie." George snickered and hid his face in his napkin. Angelina kicked Fred under the table as he opened his mouth to add something to his brother's comment.

Oliver growled and stood up, almost upsetting the table. "If you want to make fun of me any more, I will be in my dormitory," he snapped and stalked off.

Angelina looked at George, "Nice going, prat," she said than looked at Katie, "If one of us doesn't go calm him down, he's going to be a chimaera later."

Katie narrowed her eyes at her best friend. "You want me to do it, don't you?" Alicia and Angelina both donned matching pouts. Katie looked at the twins beside her, who were pointedly looking anywhere but her, knowing that if they made eye contact, they would be made to go find Oliver. Katie exhaled forcefully, "fine…sodding lot of cowards." she stuck out her tongue and followed her captain up to Gryffindor Tower.

* * *

As she entered the common room, she spotted a single brown-haired head poking up from one of the couches in front of the unlit fireplace. Katie grinned and tip-toed over. She placed her hands over his eyes and whispered "guess who" in his ear.

"Go away" he growled.

"C'mon, you know you want to," she whispered again.

"I'm not in the mood."

"Please?"

"Katie?"

She pulled her hands away and jumped over the back of the couch to land next to him. "What's up?" He gave her a blank stare. "Okay…fine. What did Percy do?"

He mumbled something and turned back to staring at the fireplace.

"I'm sorry, Oliver, but I cant hear you. I think you've deafened me over the past three years. You're going to have to speak up," Katie smiled, knowing this was annoying him and that it would help. She knew that sometimes the only way to get Oliver to stop fuming and sulking was to make him mad and make him yell at a person.

Oliver looked back at Katie, "Please, Katie…either just sit here with me, or leave…I don't want to get mad at you too," he begged.

Katie gazed at him and sighed, "Okay, Ollie…we'll just sit." She leaned her head on his shoulder and patted his knee. Oliver put his arm around her and nuzzled her head.

About a half an hour later, Oliver suddenly sat forward and looked over his shoulder at Katie who was still resting against the back of the couch.

"Thanks, Kates," he said.

"No problem, Ollie. But can you tell me what Percy said now?"

"He said that I was jealous of him because he's dating Penelope, and that I should "stop trying to steal her away; it's not working". Than when I called him a booger-eating prat, he took twenty points away. Than when I told him I was surprised he could actually talk since his head was so far up his own arse, he took twenty more away and called me…well…what it comes down to is 'bloody Scot'. Than he stormed out and I followed him and you heard the ending." he said, grinning sheepishly.

Katie laughed and nodded, "Do you still like Penelope though?"

"No! I got over her last year. She's not interested in Quidditch enough for me. I want someone who's actually read _Quidditch Through The Ages_ without it being assigned by me." Oliver said.

As what that comment implied (that Oliver wanted Katie) sunk in to both of them, the situation became awkward and they both stiffened a little. "Erm, so…how about a fly?" Katie asked, her voice cracking at the end.

Oliver mutely nodded his head, hoping that she didn't notice the blush that had spread all over his face.

* * *

Out on the pitch, Katie grabbed the quaffle and began to fly towards the posts where Oliver was hovering. As she zig-zagged back and forth, she kept her eyes on him, trying to piece through what he had just hinted at back in the Common Room. She threw the red ball at him watched him catch it easily as it meandered towards the right hoop.

"Kates! What's up with you?" he asked, frustrated at her performance.

"Sorry, Ol's. Guess I'm just a bit distraced."

"Well, focus! I know this isn't a regular practice, but you still have to focus. If you practice not focusing, you're not going to be focused for the game! And not focusing on the game, means that we lose. We can't have two chasers focusing, and one not. Focus, Katie, focus!" he chided, tossing it back to her.

She stared at him and caught the ball deftly. "So, wait…I don't think I got this…you want me to focus?" she asked. He glared and gave her a little wave telling her to try again. "Sorry, Ol, I just couldn't resist."

Four shots later, a shout came from below. They looked down to see four of their teammates. The four mounted their brooms and flew up to the same height as Katie and Oliver.

"Oy, mind if we join you? The girls are boring. Seems even though they're sitting right next to their _boyfriends_" at this, Fred looked pointedly at Angelina, who ignored him, "they still have to talk about boys."

"O come on!" Alicia retorted, "like we really want to hear about your sodding joke shop plans? Please!"

"Sodding! Fred! She just said they were sodding! Ali, I will have you know that our plans are not sodding, they're brilliant!" George exclaimed.

Katie laughed and tossed the quaffle to Angelina, who caught it and chucked it at Fred. Fred ducked instead of catching it, and Alicia had to do some fancy flying to keep it from falling to earth.

"Fred! You're supposed to catch it!" Angelina screeched. Fred stuck his tongue out at her and zoomed away.

The six teenagers spent a few hours just passing and goofing off. As lunch time rapidly approached, they decided to head indoors. Angelina, Alicia and the twins left after Oliver said that he and Katie would put everything away.

"Hey, Katie!" Oliver said, as Katie walked out the locker room door. She turned around and stepped back in.

"Yea?" she asked brightly. The weird tension between them had evaporated during the time spent with friends.

"Erm…would you…would you like to…would you like to…" Oliver fumbled.

"Would I like to what, Oliver?"

"Never mind. Let's head up to lunch, yea?" he sighed and brushed past her and walked quickly in the direction of the school.

Katie rolled her eyes and repeatedly banged her head on the wall a few times before following him up there with a muttered "Cowardly bugger."

* * *

**In Reply to: **(yes, I realize its all very squishy, sorry bout that, but there were 11 of you, and I didn't want the responses to be longer than the chapter)

**Olympian: **altho I prefer inflatable crayons for hitting myself on the head, you're welcome. it is also a pet peeve of mine, which is why I put them in the correct years.

**Onasi26: **I did update…really. **:P**

**Quidditch-Obsessed: **hold on! these things cannot be rushed! they take time…or, at least as much time as I deem worthy…and yes, Oliver is a damn idiot…but that's why we love him!

**Eowebriviel: **there you go, hope you liked!

**Bri007: **I loved your third review, it made me crack up! And to your second one, I tried my best! And to your first one: if I get too sickeningly sweet, please come hit me with an inflatable crayon.

**Shadow: **there you go! that was more! lol

**Spexy: **thank you!

**Kit Merlot: **yes, Oliver is rather clueless. but hopefully, he'll learn something.

**Depth.of.a.shadow.: **snort so yea, at this point, if I was anywhere near people, they'd be looking at me again…and you never know, he may resort to sock patterns, he may not! but I'm not telling! and now, since you have inspired me to take a trip back a couple of years with insults, I am going to go call my "editor" a 'big stinkie poo-head with cooties' since she made me edit this one myself by not responding.

**Maria Casey Wood: **well, it doesn't normally happen with the mistakes, but sometimes I just don't see them even when I'm reading over…and Oliver is one of the few people in this world who can do "continuous breathing" where he can breathe out his mouth and in thru his nose at the same time…tries to keep straight face and fails…naw, idn…he just did.

**Bedazzled: **thank you!

Okay, so yep…there they are…if you want special recognition (either again or for the first time) you're just gonna have to press that little button down there that says "Go" and altho it's not green, you can still go…or you can pretend its yellow and go extra fast…but whatever you do, do not pretend that it is red and stop. Anyway, keep reviewing, and as always, **_THANK YOU! _**


	5. A Worthy Ending

A Worthy Ending

Katie reached the stairs of the castle only to see Oliver standing there waiting for her. She looked at him and he walked down the stairs and stared by her.

"My balls," stated Oliver.

"Uh, Oliver, I know we're friends and all, but I really don't need to know about those kinds of things." Katie said, looking at him oddly.

"NO! My Quidditch balls! Did you put them away?" Oliver huffed.

"Yes, Oliver. I used my extreme manly muscles to lift that box and carry it into the little itty bitty room where they're kept." She struck a pose that was supposed to show off muscles and then giggled.

He growled and grabbed her arm and marched back towards the locker rooms. Picking up one side of the box, Oliver sighed and motioned for her to grab the other side.

"Words, Ollie…they're quite helpful sometimes," Katie chided, but grabbed the handle on the end just the same.

He glared at her. "I am hungry. I want food."

"Ditto, but …"

"On three. One. Two. Three." As he said three, the two Hogwarts students hefted the trunk and carried it haltingly into the broom closet. As Katie set down her end though, the door began swinging shut. Oliver gasped and tried to leap over the trunk, successfully dropping it on his foot. Katie tried to stop the door while simultaneously trying to life the trunk off Oliver's foot. Slam…and the door was shut.

Complete silence enveloped the small room where they were trapped. "Who's bloody idea was it to not put handles on the insides of these doors?" Katie wailed suddenly.

"I don't know. But I want to kill them. We're stuck here until some comes to get us."

Katie whimpered and sagged onto the trunk. Oliver grumbled and sat next to her.

"Ollie!" Katie said in a sing-song voice awhile later. "How many hours?"

"Baby voices don't make the time go faster." Oliver responded, holding his head in his hands.

"Maybe for you!" Katie said, still talking like she would to a baby.

"Katherine!"

She sighed. "Ok, no, seriously. How long have we been here?"

He glanced down at his watch. "An hour."

"Bloody hell."

"Why don't we do something?" he asked.

Katie glanced at him. "Like what?"

"Good point," he sighed and leaned against the wall.

"Hello left hand. How are you? I'm wonderful, right hand, and yourself? Never been better. Hey, Oliver's hands…how are you two over there?" Katie giggled and moved her hands around in front of Oliver's hands.

He swatted her away and went to back to staring at the wall. "Oliver, c'mon this is boring!"

"It's not my fault that we're in here!" he twisted to focus on her.

"O, so you think it's mine?"

"Who let the door swing shut?"

"I cannot believe you just accused me of that!" she exclaimed, her voice rising into the higher registers.

"I did not just accuse you of it. You accused yourself. Which means that you must be guilty. Because people don't accuse people unless they're guilty!"

Her brow wrinkled in confusion. "That made no sense."

He nodded emphatically.

"No!"

"Yes!"

"Oliver! Seriously! No, it didn't. Mostly because I did not accuse myself. You said that it was my fault when you implied that I let the door swing shut. That's accusing!"

Oliver rolled his eyes and turned away from her, crossing his arms.

Katie huffed and twisted in the other direction, doing the same with her arms.

"Katie, I'm sorry…Kaite? Katie, c'mon, please turn around." Oliver rested his head on her left shoulder and put his arms around her. He could feel her relax into his embrace, and he wished that he could kiss her. "Kates. I love you! Please turn?" he said, jokingly.

Katie's heart gave a leap as he said 'I love you'. "I love you too, Ollie," she whispered silently, and turned around. As she turned though, it threw into great detail just how close their faces were to each other. She took a breath and glanced into his eyes. He leaned in a little, as did she.

A spill of light from the locker room outside fell across Katie's profile. The pair jumped apart as a wizened elderly face peered in. "Why hello, Mr. Wood and Miss Bell." Professor McGonagall said.

"Hello, Professor." Oliver squeaked and stood up hurriedly.

"Dinner should just be finishing," she said, and stood aside so that Katie and Oliver could pass. They hustled out of the locker room and up to the castle.

Sometime later, a knock on Katie's dorm door made her glance up from the book she was reading. She had locked herself in there as soon as dinner was finished and she could escape away. "Who is it?" she called, padding across the room.

The person responded with another, slightly more persistent knock. "I'm not going to open until you tell me who it is!" she stated, leaning against the door at this point.

"Katherine!" a Scottish accent demanded from the other side.

"Oliver, go away, I don't feel good."

"That's a bloody lie, and you know it! You're just avoiding me!"

Tears came to her eyes and she cracked the door a little. "Hi," she said, glaring through.

He pushed the door open, and pushed her against the wall next to her. Katie stared at him, terrified. "I know you wanted to kiss me as much as I wanted to kiss you down in the locker room."

"Oliver, no. You're just doing this out of lust. We got lost in the moment. You don't actually feel this way about me," Katie choked on the words.

"Katie, I may have sounded like I was joking when I said I love you. But it's true. Ever since I saw you walk onto the pitch to try out, I had a crush on you. Over the years, it's developed into something more. I love you, Katherine Bell." Oliver stared deep into her eyes and tried to control his heart.

Katie's impulses took over and she slammed her lips against his. His arms encircled her tenderly as their kiss became passionate.

Angelina got to the top of the stairs and gasped. "Alicia!" she screamed back into the common room. Her scream broke apart the couple, who had accidentally left the door open. Alicia came running up the stairs to see a very pink Oliver, and a bright red Katie.

"Were they just…?" she turned to Angelina, unable to finish the question.

Angelina nodded and then turned to the couple. "So, are we dating yet?" she asked, grinning.

Katie blushed even more, and Oliver turned to her, "Shall we?"

She shrugged in response, broke into a smile and leaned her head against his shoulder as he threw an arm around her.

George, Fred and Lee, from the bottom of the stairs were shouting at each other, and at the girls to tell them "what in the bloody hell was going on." Angelina turned around angrily, "Fred, you won. Now shut up! Either that or corner Oliver in a second," she turned to Katie and Oliver and grabbed him by the corner of his shirt. "Bye bye, Ollie. We need to talk to Katie now."

Oliver blushed and turned to Katie. "Love you," he said, and kissed her quickly. He was almost thrown down the stairs by Angelina, who then pushed Katie inside her dorm, with Alicia following quickly behind and shutting the door.

"Spill!" the said, sitting on the beds.

Katie smiled and began the story of the broom closet.

* * *

yep...this is the end. sorry it took so long. i had to fly back to my moms house and then marching band took my life for a week (7 hours a day, carrying a sousaphone, rollstepping...) and then highschool -- its been an eventful couple of months to say the least. and i had almost forgotten all about this, and then a few days ago, i got 4 emails from the same person screaming at me that i had to continue ... and since i'm home sick today...why not. so, yep...here's the end...hope you all liked it


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